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LoDo (Lower Downtown Denver)

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Officially known as the Union Station neighborhood until TheDenver Post’s Dick Kreck first referred to it as LoDo (as in Manhattan’s SoHo) in a 1983 column, Lower Downtown Denver has become a national model of how a decaying core city neighborhood can be converted to a thriving residential, retail, and recreational district. Union Station remains the anchor building in an area that arose with predominantly rail-related enterprises, most notably the Wynkoop Street warehouses, Seventeenth Street hotels, Market Street bordellos, Larimer Street saloons, and various retail and manufacturing operations.

Another street, Little Raven, commemorates the chief of the Southern Arapaho tribe that for decades camped on this site during the winters. The 1858 discovery of gold in Cherry Creek and the South Platte brought in a flood of gold seekers who soon ousted the Native Americans.

LoDo borders the South Platte River area once known as “the Bottoms,” an undesirable floodplain where Native Americans, transients, and poor immigrants lived. In recent decades, some of the city’s priciest lofts and apartments have sprouted in the once disreputable “Bottoms.”

Twentieth-Century Revival

The official LoDo neighborhood is bounded by the South Platte River on the northwest, Cherry Creek on the southwest, Larimer Street on the southeast, and Twentieth Street on the northeast. Once the core commercial and rail hub of Denver, the neighborhood began a descent into a skid row during the 1930s. In 1988, the city designated the portion of LoDo between Twentieth Street, Larimer Street, Cherry Creek, and Wynkoop Street as a historic district. This zoning move curbed demolitions and decay by providing incentives for preservation. The strong Denver Landmark Preservation Commission ordinance enables the commission to oversee any changes involving a building permit within a landmark district, where the commission may also deny a demolition permit. Subsequently, LoDo evolved quickly from core city blight into an area featuring million-dollar lofts, swanky restaurants, upscale boutiques, and trendy nightclubs. During the 1990s, LoDo became the place to party and attracted young, late-night crowds from throughout the metro area.

What was once an area dominated by transients has also become a residential area with many new lofts. Dr. Emanuel Saltzman and his wife, JoAnn, created the first LoDo loft in 1980. Inspired by his brother’s loft in New York City’s SoHo, Saltzman bought and converted the Spice and Commercial Warehouse, at 1738 Wynkoop Street, into his family loft. Larimer Square developer and preservationist Dana Crawford followed with the Edbrooke Lofts, Flour Mill Lofts, restoration of the Oxford Hotel, and other projects. Ongoing residential construction caused LoDo’s population to soar to over 22,000 by 2015.

Crawford’s Larimer Square Project, initiated in 1965, saved the 1400 block of Larimer Street from the Denver Urban Renewal Authority’s (DURA) wrecking ball. DURA demolition doomed much of old Denver between Cherry Creek and Twentieth Street and from Larimer to Curtis Streets. That obliteration made way for new high-rise development. Meanwhile, Crawford transformed the formerly derelict 1400 block of Larimer Street into successful retail and office space. This first step in urban preservation inspired the much larger reclamation project known as LoDo. As old buildings became harder to acquire in LoDo, new buildings were erected in a style that made them look old. City planners promoted a popular trend of first-floor retail and upper-story office or residential space.

In 1988, John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. and five partners converted the John Sidney Brown Building at Eighteenth and Wynkoop Streets into Colorado’s first brewpub, the Wynkoop Brewing Company. The brewery was among the first in a new boom industry; by 2014, Colorado had more than 230 craft breweries and brew pubs. Hickenlooper’s brewery success propelled him into office as mayor of Denver (2003–11), then governor of Colorado (2011– ). Joyce Meskis, who in 1974 founded Tattered Cover, the region’s largest independent bookstore, converted the Chester S. Morey Mercantile Building at Sixteenth and Wynkoop Streets into the largest branch of her bookstore chain in 1994.

Stadiums

The success of LoDo inspired Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies to build their home, Coors Field, on the northeast edge of the Historic District at Twentieth and Blake Streets in 1995. HOK Architects sank the ballpark below grade to keep its walls at the same height as surrounding warehouses and borrowed LoDo’s red brick, stone trim, and other historical elements. At the other end of LoDo, just across Cherry Creek, the Pepsi Center opened in 2000 as home for the National Basketball Association’s Denver Nuggets and the National Hockey League’s Colorado Avalanche. These two giant venues made LoDo a sports fan’s paradise. The vintage-style ballpark and modern Pepsi Center attracted many suburbanites and visitors from throughout the state and region. They found LoDo safe and pedestrian-friendly and with no shortage of bars, boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and other amenities.

Renewal of Adjacent Neighborhoods

The reincarnation of Denver’s once notorious skid row as the trendy LoDo District sparked further revitalization in adjacent neighborhoods, including Auraria, the Central Business District, Five Points, and Highlands. One of the most spectacular rebirths came in the downtown South Platte River corridor, long a polluted industrial strip. This corridor became prime real estate as Denver refocused on the South Platte River as a natural asset. Denver mayors William H. McNichols Jr., Federico Peña, Wellington Webb, and John Hickenlooper all worked to expand the city’s urban greenway trails and park systems, especially along the South Platte River and Cherry Creek. This promoted pedestrian and bicycle travel to and within the core city.

Transportation and Education

Union Station, the centerpiece of LoDo, reopened in 2014 as the Crawford Hotel and a multi-modal transit hub focused on revitalized rail service. Union Station, once the hub of a vast, steel spiderweb of rails, again became a travel nucleus. Most of the adjacent maze of railroad tracks was ripped out to accommodate new bus and rail services. The rest of the area between Wynkoop Street and the South Platte River boomed in the early 2000s, with new office, retail, and residential construction. Behind Union Station, in 2014, the Regional Transportation District opened a spectacular underground twenty-two-bay bus terminal and five rail tracks designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill under a soaring white fabric canopy.

Across Cherry Creek from LoDo, the Auraria Urban Renewal Project also promoted core city revival by replacing a poor, heavily Latino, light industrial neighborhood with the Auraria Higher Education Center. Home to the Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and the University of Colorado–Denver, the center is the largest campus in the state, with 43,000 students providing a customer and employee base for LoDo.

Future of LoDo

Redevelopment of LoDo drives the broader revitalization of downtown, exemplifies the twenty-first-century trend toward downtown living, and reestablishes the key role of urban areas in western history. The gentrification of the once-declining core has also reshaped urban demographics. For the first time since the 1920s, the city is becoming whiter and richer, as the poor and many minorities are priced out of the core. The presence of a red-light and saloon district led many residents to flee what became skid row. Here, at the bottom of the social ladder, people of color unwelcome elsewhere found cheap housing and more tolerance. The Chinese, for instance, remained in LoDo even after the Anti-Chinese Riot of 1880, the city’s worst race riot. Blacks, Latinos, and Japanese Americans also gravitated to the area, as did some of the poorer and more discriminated-against European immigrants. The down and out remained LoDo’s majority population until the 1980s. This twenty-first-century reshaping of the metropolis reversed the twentieth-century pattern of urban blight and suburban flight. LoDo has helped make Denver a pacesetter in this national transformation. After losing population between 1970 and 1990, the City and County of Denver has been growing again in recent decades and remains the largest city in the state and the Rocky Mountain region. Starting with the reincarnation of the once-decaying LoDo at the heart of the city, the Mile High City has enjoyed a twenty-first-century renaissance.

10th Grade

LoDo is the nickname for Lower Downtown Denver, which is officially known as the Union Station neighborhood. In 1983 Denver Post columnist Dick Kreck referred to the area as “LoDo,” a clever take on the words LOwer DOwntown that sounds like New York City’s SoHo neighborhood.

Lower Downtown Denver has become a model for how a decaying city neighborhood can be revitalized, as it has become a thriving residential, retail, and recreational district. Union Station remains the anchor building.

The LoDo area started in the 1860s as the commercial and rail hub of Denver, with warehouses, hotels, bordellos, saloons, and retail and manufacturing operations. It served in that capacity until the 1930s, when it began a descent into a “skid row.” The South Platte River area was known as “the Bottoms”—an undesirable floodplain where transients and poor immigrants lived. Here, at the bottom of the social ladder, people who were not welcome elsewhere found cheap housing and avoided prejudice.

Blacks, Latinos, and Japanese Americans gravitated to the area, as did some of the poorer and more ostracized European immigrants. The Chinese remained in LoDo even after the Anti-Chinese Riot of 1880, and the neighborhood remained the home of the down-and-out until the 1980s.

Twentieth-Century Revival

In 1988 the city designated LoDo as a historic district. This stopped it from being torn down and provided incentives for preservation. The Denver Landmark Preservation Commission ensured that the area was preserved. Subsequently, LoDo evolved from “skid row” into an area with million-dollar lofts, swanky restaurants, upscale boutiques, and trendy nightclubs. Starting in the 1990s, LoDo became a popular place to party. It attracts young, late-night crowds from throughout the metro area.

People started living in LoDo in lofts that were created in old warehouses. Dr. Emanuel Saltzman and his wife JoAnn created the first LoDo loft in 1980. They were inspired by his brother’s loft in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood. The Saltzmans bought and converted the Spice and Commercial Warehouse at 1738 Wynkoop Street into their family loft. Larimer Square developer Dana Crawford followed with the Edbrooke Lofts and Flour Mill Lofts. The lofts attracted artists to the area. Today, some of the city’s most expensive apartments are in the once-disreputable “Bottoms.”

Dana Crawford was instrumental to the transformation of LoDo. Her Larimer Square Project, which aimed to revitalize historic buildings on Larimer Street, was started in 1965. The 1400 block of Larimer Street was scheduled to be demolished, but she intervened, helping to transform the run-down and neglected block into successful retail and office spaces. Larimer Square, as it is now known, is a showcase of LoDo’s redevelopment. Crawford also worked on the restoration of the Oxford Hotel and many other projects.

The preservation of Larimer Street inspired further development in LoDo. As old buildings became harder to acquire, new buildings were designed in a style that made them look old. The popular trend of first-floor retail and upper-story office or residential space began in the 1980s.

In 1988 John Hickenlooper and his partners created Colorado’s first brewpub in LoDo. They renovated the John Brown Building at Eighteenth and Wynkoop Streets and opened the Wynkoop Brewing Company. The brewery was the first in a new boom industry. By 2014 Colorado had more than 230 craft breweries and brewpubs. Hickenlooper’s success in the brewery business propelled him into office as mayor of Denver, then governor of Colorado.

Joyce Meskis founded Tattered Cover, the region’s largest independent bookstore. She converted the Chester S. Morey Mercantile Building at Sixteenth and Wynkoop Streets into the largest branch of her bookstore in 1994.

Stadiums

Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies built their home, Coors Field, on the northeast edge of LoDo in 1995. The ballpark was lowered to keep its walls the same height as surrounding warehouses, and the design borrowed historical elements from LoDo, such as red brick and stone trim. At the other end of LoDo, just across Cherry Creek, the Pepsi Center opened in 2000. It is the home of the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche.

These two stadiums make LoDo a sports fan’s paradise. The vintage-style ballpark and modern Pepsi Center attract visitors from across the state and region. They find LoDo safe and pedestrian-friendly, with bars, boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and other amenities.

Renewal of Adjacent Neighborhoods

The trendy LoDo District sparked improvements in nearby neighborhoods, including Auraria, the Central Business District, Five Points, and Highlands. The South Platte River corridor, formerly a polluted industrial strip, was reimagined as a natural setting and prime real estate. A series of mayors worked to expand the city’s urban trails and park systems, especially along the South Platte and Cherry Creek. This promoted cleanup of the river area, as well as pedestrian and bicycle travel within the core city.

Transportation and Education

Union Station, the centerpiece of LoDo, reopened in 2014 as the Crawford Hotel. Behind Union Station, an underground twenty-two-bay bus terminal and five rail tracks opened. A soaring white fabric canopy covers the facility, which serves as a transit hub for light rail and bus service. Most of the original railroad tracks were ripped out to accommodate the new bus and rail services. The area between Wynkoop Street and the South Platte River boomed in the early 2000s, with new office, retail, and residential construction.

Across Cherry Creek from LoDo, the Auraria Urban Renewal Project renovated yet another historic part of downtown Denver. The project replaced a poor neighborhood with the Auraria Higher Education Center, now home to the Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University, and the University of Colorado–Denver. With 43,000 students, it is the largest campus in Colorado.

Future of LoDo

The redevelopment of LoDo not only drove the revitalization of downtown Denver but also highlights a trend toward downtown living and the reshaping of urban demographics due to gentrification. Although it has been far from perfect, the reshaping of Denver’s downtown districts reversed a pattern of urban blight and suburban flight and made LoDo into a national model for other downtowns.

8th Grade

LoDo is the nickname for Lower Downtown Denver. It is officially known as the Union Station neighborhood. In 1983 a Denver Post columnist referred to the area as LoDo, a clever take on the words LOwer DOwntown that sounds like New York City’s neighborhood of SoHo. It is a thriving residential, retail, and recreational district.

LoDo is a model of how a downtown neighborhood can change. In the 1860s, the area was the commercial and rail hub of Denver. It started with train-related businesses, including warehouses, hotels, saloons, stores and factories.

By the 1930s, the neighborhood changed. It had cheap saloons and hotels. It was an area where people who were not welcome in other places ended up. Some were homeless, alcoholic, or mentally ill. Others were poor immigrants or hobos. The area was called “skid row.” People who were down and out lived in LoDo until the 1980s.

Twentieth-Century Revival

Developer Dana Crawford was instrumental to the success of LoDo. Larimer Street was run down and neglected, but she wanted to save its buildings. The entire block was going to be torn down. Crawford started her “Larimer Square Project” in 1965, helping transform Larimer Street into successful retail and office spaces. It is now an important part of LoDo. Crawford also saved other historic buildings in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

In 1988 LoDo became a historic district. Developers now had reason to preserve the history of the area. LoDo changed from skid row to a fashionable area. It had million-dollar apartments, restaurants, boutiques, and nightclubs. During the 1990s, LoDo became a popular place that attracted young, late-night crowds.

People started to live in LoDo. Some of the first homes were lofts in the old warehouses. Emanuel and JoAnn Saltzman created the first LoDo loft in 1980. They were inspired by his brother’s loft in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood. They bought and converted the Spice Warehouse into their family loft. Other lofts followed. The lofts attracted artists to the area.

The preservation of Larimer Street inspired other development in LoDo. Historic buildings were renovated. New buildings were designed in a style that made them look old. The popular trend of first-floor retail and upper-story office or residences began.

In 1988 John Hickenlooper and his partners created Colorado’s first brewpub. They renovated a historic building on Wynkoop Street and opened the Wynkoop Brewing Company. The brewery was the first in a new industry. By 2014 Colorado had 230 brewpubs. Hickenlooper later became mayor of Denver, then governor of Colorado.

Joyce Meskis opened the Tattered Cover Bookstore in 1974. It is the largest independent bookstore in the Rocky Mountain region. She converted the Morey Mercantile Building at Sixteenth and Wynkoop Streets into a branch of her bookstore in 1994.

Stadiums

Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies built their home, Coors Field, in LoDo in 1995. The ballpark was lowered to keep its walls the same height as surrounding warehouses. The design used LoDo’s historical elements of red brick and stone trim. At the other end of LoDo, the Pepsi Center opened in 2000. It is the home of the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche.

These two stadiums make LoDo a place for sports fans. The vintage-style ballpark and modern Pepsi Center attract visitors from across the state and region. They find LoDo safe and pedestrian-friendly, with plenty of bars, boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and other amenities.

Renewal of Adjacent Neighborhoods

The success of LoDo sparked improvements in nearby neighborhoods of Auraria, Five Points, and Highlands. The South Platte River had been polluted and neglected; this area was reimagined as a natural asset and prime real estate. The city focused on creating trails and park systems along the South Platte and Cherry Creek. This promoted cleanup of the river areas as well as pedestrian and bicycle travel within the city.

Transportation and Education

The Union Station area boomed in the early 2000s. There was new office, retail and residential building. In 2014 Union Station was renovated. It reopened as the Crawford Hotel. Behind Union Station, an underground bus terminal and rail station opened. It is covered with a soaring white fabric canopy. Most of the original railroad tracks were ripped out to accommodate new bus and rail lines.

The Auraria Project renovated another area of LoDo. The Auraria Higher Education Center replaced a poor neighborhood. The Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver and the University of Colorado–Denver all share a campus. It is the largest campus in Colorado, with 43,000 students.

The revitalization of LoDo in the heart of Denver was a major part of the city’s growth over the last several decades, and it continues to drive the downtown area’s success today.

4th Grade

LoDo is the nickname for Lower Downtown Denver. It is officially called the Union Station neighborhood. It is a clever take on the words LOwer DOwntown. It sounds like New York City’s neighborhood of “SoHo.”

LoDo is an example of how a city neighborhood can change. In the 1860s, Union Station was the center of Denver. Train-related businesses were in the area. There were warehouses, hotels, saloons, stores, and factories.

By the 1930s, the neighborhood changed. It had cheap saloons and hotels. It was an area where people who were not welcome in other places ended up. Some were homeless, alcoholic, or mentally ill. Others were poor immigrants or hobos. The area was called “skid row.” People who were down and out lived in LoDo until the 1980s.

Twentieth-Century Revival

Dana Crawford was a developer in Denver. She wanted to save the buildings on Larimer Street. The street was run down and in bad shape. The whole block was going to be torn down. She started her “Larimer Square Project” in 1965. She helped change Larimer Street into stores and offices. It is now an important part of LoDo. Crawford also saved other historic buildings in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.

In 1988 LoDo became a historic district. This stopped developers from tearing down historic buildings. It made them try to preserve these buildings. LoDo changed from “skid row” into a well-off area. Restaurants, boutiques, and nightclubs opened. During the 1990s, LoDo became very popular.

People started to live in LoDo. Some of the first homes were lofts. They were in old warehouses. Emanuel and JoAnn Saltzman created the first loft in 1980. His brother lived in a loft in New York City’s SoHo area. They made their loft in the top floor of the old Spice Warehouse. Other lofts were created in LoDo. They attracted artists to the area.

In 1988 John Hickenlooper and others opened Colorado’s first brewpub. They fixed up a historic building on Wynkoop Street and opened the Wynkoop Brewing Company. This was a new industry for Denver. By 2014 Colorado had more than 200 brewpubs. Hickenlooper later become mayor of Denver, then governor of Colorado.

Joyce Meskis started Tattered Cover Bookstore in 1974. She made the historic Morey Mercantile Building into a branch of her bookstore in 1994.

Stadiums

In 1995 the Colorado Rockies built Coors Field. It was designed to look like a historic building. It has LoDo’s red brick and stone trim. The Pepsi Center opened in 2000. It is the home of the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche. These two stadiums made LoDo a place for sports fans.

Renewal of Nearby Neighborhoods

The success of LoDo improved other neighborhoods. The areas of Auraria, Five Points, and Highlands were fixed up. The rivers in LoDo had been polluted and neglected. Bike paths and parks were created along the rivers. People could walk and bicycle near downtown.

Transportation and Education

In 2014 Union Station was renovated. It opened as the Crawford Hotel. There were new offices, shops, and housing. Most of the old railroad tracks were ripped out. Behind the hotel, an underground bus and train station opened. New rail lines connected downtown with the Denver airport.

Across Cherry Creek, another area was renovated. A poor neighborhood had been in the area. It became the Auraria Higher Education Center. The Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State, and the University of Colorado–Denver all share the site. It is the largest campus in Colorado.